The Grammys will try to reverse a heavy trend on Sunday night: the bitter failure of galas during a pandemic in the United States. Fortunately, things are looking good.
First good news: CBS does not intend to offer a ceremony in Zoom mode. At least that’s what host Trevor Noah promised in an interview with Reuters last week.
The event will be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The artists will attend while respecting the measures of physical distancing.
Photo AFP
The ceremony will take place in part at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
–
–
–
This simple decision foreshadows a televisual appointment clearly superior to the recent Golden Globes. Remotely piloted by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, the semi-confined gala, during which the winners delivered their thanks in front of their computers, turned out to be a bitter disappointment, like that of the Emmy, presented in September. The two ceremonies also recorded drastic drops in audience, according to Nielsen.
The great means
The Recording Academy is taking great steps to avoid such a marked drop in ratings. She recruited a few big names to perform during the event, such as Taylor Swift and Dua Lipa, two artists nominated for Album of the Year.
Photo AFP
John Mayer rehearses for the Grammy.
–
–
–
In the past few days, the association has announced that Harry Styles will open the festivities. Cardi B, Billie Eilish, BTS, Megan Thee Stallion, Bad Bunny, Coldplay’s Chris Martin, John Mayer, Brandi Carlile, Post Malone, Doja Cat and Miranda Lambert have also confirmed their attendance. Bruno Mars will also push the song, but as a member of the R&B group Silk Sonic, with Anderson Paak.
A shadow on the board: Beyoncé. Although she leads the field with nine nominations, the star is not planning to offer a number.
Photo AFP
Beyoncé leads the way with nine nominations.
–
–
–
Several performances will take place in the open air, around the Convention Center. Others will be pre-recorded.
Interesting detail: to present the categories, the Recording Academy has used the services of people who work in performance venues, a sector hard hit since March 2020.
No red carpet will precede the ceremony. And no public will attend.
Complex operation
In Quebec, the galas presented since the arrival of the coronavirus have fared better. We think in particular of the Gemini Awards hosted by Véronique Cloutier last fall. Or at the ADISQ Gala, piloted by Louis-José Houde in October. The ceremonies were much more sober than usual, of course, but the finalists were there.
In the United States, getting the nominees together in one place has turned out to be much more complicated, not only for a matter of distance (not everyone lives in Los Angeles), but for a matter of insurance. During a pandemic, guaranteeing the safety of the stars would be expensive. Very expensive.
Quebecers to watch
In addition to Beyoncé and company, it will be necessary to watch two Quebec artists on Sunday. Montrealer Kaytranada distinguished himself with three nominations: Best New Artist, Best Electronic / Dance Album for Bubba and Best dance recording for 10 %. For his part, Rufus Wainwright will try to win a first Grammy award with Follow the Rules, finalist for Traditional Pop Vocal Album.
At the start, these 63is Grammys were due to premiere in January. The organizers preferred to postpone the event by two months because of the health context.
CBS and Citytv present the 63e Grammy ceremony Sunday at 8 p.m. Pre-gala show at 7 p.m.
–
